Breakaway Review 9/18-25/2016

[codered]

First, a little about us. This is our 13th cruise, second on Breakaway.

 

Pre-Cruise/Embarkation

 

We stayed at the Hampton Inn in Elizabeth, NJ, and drove in to Manhattan on Sunday morning. We got a call from NCL the week prior letting us know that the UN was in session and traffic might be impacted. This coupled with a bomb explosion in Chelsea on Saturday night had us expecting the worst in terms of NYC traffic. Fortunately we encountered no problems getting to the cruise terminal. We parked on the upper deck adjacent to the ship.

 

We arrived around 10 am and checked-in. We were in boarding group 8. I think we began boarding around 11:40 am. The gangway was on deck 7 which was convenient to O'Sheehan's where we had lunch. We went to our cabin afterward to drop off our carry-on items. The cabin steward was still working on our room. The cabins were ready by 2 p.m. One piece of luggage was there when the cabin was ready. The other didn't show up until after the ship sailed.

 

Cabin

 

We stayed in 12878, a balcony on the starboard aft. On our last cruise we stayed in a family mini-suite which had a large balcony. The balcony for 12878 was large enough for two chairs and a small table. The cabin's location was convenient to the stairs and elevator. The cabin was quiet.

 

Our cabin steward did a nice job. We were short on wash cloths on the first day but had them brought in later the first night. After we left a note for the steward letting him know we need extra towels every day, he took care of us.

UBP/Bar Service

 

This was our first time using the Ultimate Beverage Package. We got it as an incentive for booking. It wasn't really free in that we had to pay a service charge at booking. Though some have complained about the selection of “free” booze, I found it to be adequate. The bar service was best at Mixx on Deck 6 and the bar at Spice H20.

 

Dining

 

We only ate at one specialty restaurant (Moderno) on this cruise. It is our favorite. I actually liked the chicken legs best of all of the meats. The salad bar is incredible. For other dinners we ate at Manhattan, Taste, and Savor. The servers were all attentive though some seemed to be spread a little thin. Sometimes the amount of time between courses seemed long. We weren't in a hurry so this wasn't a huge deal.

 

We had several lunches and breakfasts at O'Sheehan's. Service was usually quick and the quality of the food was good. The buffet is among the best I've seen on cruise ships. We had one lunch and breakfast there. Other reviewers recommended trying the lobster roll from Ocean Blue so we indulged. The roll was soft and buttery and there was an adequate amount of lobster.

 

Entertainment

 

We spent most nights at Fat Cats and Headliners. We really enjoyed the blues/jazz music of Les Getreaux and the Creole Cookin' Band. At Headliners we enjoyed Howl at the Moon more than Second City. The musicians at Howl at the Moon are really talented entertainers who knew how to get the audience involved (and on their feet).

 

We skipped Rock of Ages because we saw it on Broadway and on the Breakaway last year. We did see Burn the Floor for a second time and continued to be impressed by the dancing, music, and vocals.

 

The vocal duo in the Atrium were enteraining.

 

Bermuda

 

This was our fifth visit to Bermuda and it never disappoints. We arrived on Wednesday morning and left early Friday afternoon. Departure was a few hours earlier than originally scheduled because of Tropical Storm Karl coming nearby. I applaud the Captain for keeping us updated on the weather and his plans and for putting safety above all else.

 

On the first day there were torrential rains. These weren't the usual passing storms/showers that one normally encouters on the islands. Fortunately we brought rain jackets. We took the ferry to Hamilton to do a little shopping then a bus to the Swizzle Inn. The Inn was on our Bermuda bucket list from previous visits. We tried the Rum Swizzle and wahoo burgers. Everything was great. We went to a small ice cream shop across the road then took the bus to St. George. The rain mostly ended by then and after doing a little shopping, we took the ferry from St. George to the Dockyard.

 

On Day 2 we went back to Hamilton in the morning and explored two new beaches in the afternoon. Though we loved Horseshoe Bay during previous visits, this time we wanted to try some smaller beaches. Warwick Long Bay and Jobson's Cove were a bus stop or two away from Horseshoe Bay and were much quieter.

 

On Day 3, we did some shopping at the Dockyard before the ship left at 12:30 pm.

 

Disembarkation

 

I like that you can choose the time approximate time you leave the ship. We were scheduled for around 9:20 am and were called to leave around 9:10. From there, things went awfully awry. It took about 90 minutes to get from the ship to my car. The lines in the terminal were horrible. The long lines were solely due to not having enough customs and immigration officers to handle the 4000+ people leaving the ship. At one point, there were only 4 officers handling the throngs of people trying to leave. Lines were growing and the patience of the former passengers was quickly running out. Once whoever was running the show decided to bring out 3 more officers, the pace picked up dramatically. While I understand that NCL doesn't control the actions of the government, the cruise line needs to know that this situation was entirely unacceptable and they need to provide feedback to avoid it from happening again.

 

Overall this was a great cruise and we really enjoyed our time on Breakaway and on Bermuda.

[david5272]

great review..was on the same cruise.

 

 

my review is here.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2406573&highlight=breakaway

[codered]

great review..was on the same cruise.

 

 

my review is here.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2406573&highlight=breakaway

 

Thanks! I enjoyed reading yours, too. I agree with your comments about the atrium. It is a nice area but becomes crowded pretty quickly.

[mom2tcdx2]

Nice review, at least I know when we return from our sailing we can take our sweet time getting off the ship. Our train doesn't leave until after 12:30 so we don't need to be in a rush getting off.

[cincicruisers]

Thanks for sharing your review with us.

[tel2]

My experience in NY, on 5 cruises so far out of that terminal, is that it is more than worth it to tip a porter 15-20 or so to take your luggage to the curb, even if your are more than capable of carrying it, because the porters or their union seem to have some special relationship with customs, so that the porters, and you with them when they have your luggage, wiz right thru and bypass the insufferably long customs lines.

 

Last time, my husband and I only had two carry-ons, and I had a big tote bag -- easily handled by us. Nonetheless, my husband flagged down a porter, gave him a 20. loaded our luggage and tote bag onto the cart. Porter asked if we minded if he loaded another couples as well, and we didnt The 4 of us sailed thru. The people we were traveling with (but who thankfully had their own pick-up arrangements) were too cheap to pay a porter. We all got off the ship together at about 9AM. We were back in Philly before noon. Our friends called us from the NJ turnpike and said they had just gone thru the tunnel at 11:45. At least to me, it was well worth 20 bucks. And we do it that way every time. In many cases, it isnt that people are too cheap, it is just that no one has ever told them about this little trick.

Edited September 30, 2016 by tel2

[codered]

My experience in NY, on 5 cruises so far out of that terminal, is that it is more than worth it to tip a porter 15-20 or so to take your luggage to the curb, even if your are more than capable of carrying it, because the porters or their union seem to have some special relationship with customs, so that the porters, and you with them when they have your luggage, wiz right thru and bypass the insufferably long customs lines.

 

Last time, my husband and I only had two carry-ons, and I had a big tote bag -- easily handled by us. Nonetheless, my husband flagged down a porter, gave him a 20. loaded our luggage and tote bag onto the cart. Porter asked if we minded if he loaded another couples as well, and we didnt The 4 of us sailed thru. The people we were traveling with (but who thankfully had their own pick-up arrangements) were too cheap to pay a porter. We all got off the ship together at about 9AM. We were back in Philly before noon. Our friends called us from the NJ turnpike and said they had just gone thru the tunnel at 11:45. At least to me, it was well worth 20 bucks. And we do it that way every time. In many cases, it isnt that people are too cheap, it is just that no one has ever told them about this little trick.

 

 

Good advice. Next time we'll try the porters. Thanks.

 

 

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[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[easyboy]

Very nice review . Thanks.

[lennyfitz]

We were also on this cruise. We had a great time overall. We weren't impressed with our room steward or Modernos this time around but had a great time at Teppanyaki. The food wasn't the best but our chef sure was! We got VIBE passes again and I will always say it is money well spent. That with the UBP promo - we had a good time while on the ship :)

 

Like you, on the first day we wound up at the Swizzle Inn. We went to the aquarium first which is a great $10. We've been to the Swizzle Inn before, I'm actually not a fan of the swizzles but we love the nachos so we went back. We found a pretty large roach infestation. I will not be going back. We took the bus to St George and took the ferry back to the ship. We really did get rained on all day! That evening we walked to Seaglass beach and a local did not believe us when we told him how much rain we had all day. We love that beach and it is sad to see how much glass has gone since we were last there 3 years ago!

 

As we headed out on the second day to go to the beaches, the captain announced the earlier all-aboard time for Friday and I was BUMMED! But when we got to Horseshoe Bay and got beat up in the waves, I wasn't so bummed any more! The smaller bays further down are MUCH quieter and one was far calmer, we were able to get in the water with out taking a beating :)

 

Also like you, we had a terrible time getting off the ship. We headed off at 845. It took just under 2 hours to get to the car. Customs was a joke. When 2 of the agents returned from their break our side applauded. I noticed the porters getting through much faster like a previous poster mentioned, so lesson learned. Either wait until the very end to get off or tip the porters generously.

 

Well that turned in to a mini-review. Whoops! I always get back from cruises and stalk the boards to see what reviews pop up from our trip. I love to see what other cruisers on our trip thought and if we had any similar experiences.

[mjkacmom]

We've cruised out of NYC three times, the second time we had the same issues with customs (6 years ago). It seems to be hit or miss. The third time we utilized a porter, and got through customs in 10 minutes, best $20 spent.

[cantwaittogo0618]

greetings, it was pleasurable to read your review for recent trip. i am going to bermuda in 2 weeks. my hubby and i are very excited. i have actually been on the breakaway 2 years ago. with a girlfriend. we had such a lovely time.

most staff was very courteous, sailing was good no sickness for me. my husband and i were on the gem 3 years ago for our first trip. the weather was not intestinal-friendly. hence why it has taken him a couple of years to go again.

me, i love cruising 7 nights of having the bed turned down for me --no phones -no job - no cooking. and the activities! oh boy.

im working on the next cruise already. hoping for our children and grandkids to go with us as a family. now THATS goingto be spectacular for us.

[MJSailors]

Nice review, at least I know when we return from our sailing we can take our sweet time getting off the ship. Our train doesn't leave until after 12:30 so we don't need to be in a rush getting off.

 

Just a head's up about getting out of the terminal to get a 12:30 train out of Penn or Grand Central.

You can take your time getting off the ship,however,be aware that things can happen.

Last Sunday,my DH and I had Blue group disembark at 9:40.

It took about 40 minutes to get off the ship to the baggage area.

Then,we found out that one of our bags was missing.

Port staff looked in all the baggage areas with no luck.

I was instructed to fill out a claim form.

After that was completed with a port staffer,another staffer approached us with the news that our bag had been taken,by mistake,by another passenger!!!!!!!

That passenger had returned the bag ,thankfully!,to the embarkation area,upstairs.

We were expedited through customers by a port staffer and taken upstairs to claim the bag.

We finally left the terminal at 12:20.

Just saying,stuff happens.

I would recommend that you give yourself enough time to disembark and get a cab to get you to the train station in time to get your train.

[codered]

greetings, it was pleasurable to read your review for recent trip. i am going to bermuda in 2 weeks. my hubby and i are very excited. i have actually been on the breakaway 2 years ago. with a girlfriend. we had such a lovely time.

 

most staff was very courteous, sailing was good no sickness for me. my husband and i were on the gem 3 years ago for our first trip. the weather was not intestinal-friendly. hence why it has taken him a couple of years to go again.

 

me, i love cruising 7 nights of having the bed turned down for me --no phones -no job - no cooking. and the activities! oh boy.

 

im working on the next cruise already. hoping for our children and grandkids to go with us as a family. now THATS goingto be spectacular for us.

 

 

Thank you! I hope you and your hubby enjoy your upcoming cruise.

 

 

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[DaisyDebmo]

We depart in two weeks, have never been on NCL or BA. Seems like everyone recommends O'Sheehan's on departure for lunch. If so isn't it quite crowded? Also, can you advise on the comedy shows, I am confused. There are two shows, an early that allows children and a later adult show? And you should book once on board? Thanks!

[codered]

We depart in two weeks, have never been on NCL or BA. Seems like everyone recommends O'Sheehan's on departure for lunch. If so isn't it quite crowded? Also, can you advise on the comedy shows, I am confused. There are two shows, an early that allows children and a later adult show? And you should book once on board? Thanks!

 

Most people seem to head to the buffet or their cabin after boarding. O'Sheehan's was busy but we were seated right away and didn't have to fight the masses.

 

The Second City comedy shows do have a family-friendly and adult version. We have only seen the former. It is skit comedy, supposedly improvised, and we enjoyed it. We are going again in a few weeks and haven't seen an option to book in advance. I'd recommend booking as soon as you board.

[david5272]

Most people seem to head to the buffet or their cabin after boarding. O'Sheehan's was busy but we were seated right away and didn't have to fight the masses.

 

The Second City comedy shows do have a family-friendly and adult version. We have only seen the former. It is skit comedy, supposedly improvised, and we enjoyed it. We are going again in a few weeks and haven't seen an option to book in advance. I'd recommend booking as soon as you board.

 

on 9/18 - once we boarded the Breakaway..we avoid most of the crowd..headed to Uptown Grille. Now is it closed to make room for MargaritaVille.

 

I think around 1pm, there were like 6 customers. plus the group of 4 I was with.